His Own Special People

 

 

1 Peter 2:9-10 (NKJV) 9 But you [are] a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; 10 who once [were] not a people but [are] now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.

 

The Scriptures are talking to us, the Church, the followers of Jesus Christ, and they tell us that we are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, and a holy nation. God has set us apart for Himself so that we can proclaim His praises. 1 Peter 2:9 calls us “His own special people,” and that is what we are. 1 John 3:1-2 affirms this when it says:

1 John 3:1-2 (NKJV) 1 Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. 2 Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.

 

How incredible! How marvelous! That we should be called children of God, and that is exactly what we are!

 

When 1 John 3 says “We,” it is referring to all those who believe in Jesus Christ, God’s Son. According to 1 John 4, anyone who denies that Jesus is fully God is not God’s child. So, we need to be sure to believe in the Jesus we meet in Scripture and guard against those who would redefine who Jesus is. Any person who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ has been born again. Such a person is God’s child and is a member of the Church by the baptism of the Holy Spirit. The Church is a spiritual house being built to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 2:4-5 says:

1 Peter 2:4-5 (NKJV) 4 Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, 5 you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

 

Belonging to the Lord Jesus Christ is what makes a person God’s Child. Who a person is according to the flesh makes no difference. You do not need money, nor do you need to be born into the right family. Race, nationality, and social standing do not matter. In the Church, there is no difference between Jew or Gentile, male or female, and rich or poor. Galatians 3:28-29, along with other Scriptures, makes this point.

Galatians 3:28-29 (NKJV) 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

 

In the Church, we belong to Christ, and we are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to God’s promises.

 

At this point, we must make a distinction. Galatians 3:29 says we, the Church, are “Abraham’s seed.” It does not say we are “Israel.” Nowhere does the Bible say that the Church is the new Israel, or that Israel and the Church are the same thing.

 

When Galatians was written, the Church was in transition. The Church began in Jerusalem and spread from there. In its early years, it was made up entirely of Jews; there were no Gentiles in the Church (Gentiles means “nations,” which means anyone who is not Jewish/Hebrew). The shift to including Gentiles was not without challenges. In Galatia, some Jewish people came and taught that to be a Christian, a person also had to convert to Judaism. Galatians was written to stop this nonsense (and the book of Galatians makes it clear how false it is). In Galatians 6, the Scriptures say:

Galatians 6:15-16 (NKJV) 15 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation. 16 And as many as walk according to this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God.

 

Some argue, “Look! The Bible calls the Church the Israel of God!” But if you look again, this passage actually distinguishes between the Church and the Israel of God. The Israel of God is the remnant mentioned in Romans 9, whom God always reserves for Himself (Jewish people who have accepted their Messiah).

 

The New Testament did not abolish Israel as a nation. Romans chapter 11 is especially helpful here. Romans 11 says:

Romans 11:25-26 (NKJV) 25 For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. 26 And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: “The Deliverer will come out of Zion, And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob;”

 

Romans 11:25-26 is part of a larger argument, but clearly, a distinction is being made between Gentiles and Israel. In the Church, however, this distinction is not observed. The Church is the Body of Christ, and Israel is a nation. They are entirely different entities. This distinction is vital because if God fails to keep His promises to Israel, how can we trust Him to keep His promises to the Church? God says:

Deuteronomy 7:9 (NKJV) “Therefore know that the LORD your God, He [is] God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments;

 

In this verse, God explains to Israel that they are His own special people (the same thing He tells the Church in 1 Peter). God is faithful and keeps His promises. He is fulfilling the promises He made to Israel. Many events happening today reflect Old Testament prophecies concerning Israel, making it clear that God is honoring His covenant with Israel.

 

As a nation, Israel is God’s own special people, and He has plans for them. The Church, meanwhile, transcends political, racial, and national boundaries, and it is also God’s own special people. God used Israel to bring the Word of God and salvation to all nations. Now, He is using the Church to do the same. Both will serve God together in the Millennial Kingdom, but before that, Romans 11 explains that “Thus all Israel will be saved.”

 

The God of Israel and the God of the Old Testament is the same as the God of the Church and the New Testament. That’s why the entire Bible is vital for knowing God. Without understanding the Old Testament, we can’t fully grasp the New Testament. And if we understand the Old Testament, we understand what God is doing in the world, in the Church, and in our lives.

 

As the Lord allows, I plan to guide us through the first chapters of Exodus. Our goal is to learn how God works. His ways are beyond finding out, but He has revealed what He wants us to know in Scripture. By understanding God’s revealed ways, we can see what He is doing in the world, the Church, and in our personal lives.

 

Our journey through Exodus, like life, will have highs and lows, joys and sorrows, and challenges. You won't want to miss any part of it as we seek to know and love our God more deeply.

 

As we begin this study, I want to remind you that if you have asked Jesus Christ to be your Savior, you are a member of the Church. It’s not about being part of a local church or denomination. If you call upon the name of Jesus for salvation, you are a child of God, part of His Church, and you have eternal life. Go out and live with this confidence.

Witnesses

 Witnesses

1 John 5:6-13

 

 

“This is He who came by water and blood - Jesus Christ.”

 

What does this mean? By water and blood?

 

I want to come back to this question, but let’s start by looking at what this passage of scripture says about those who bear witness. In verse seven, John says for there are three that bear witness in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit, and these three are one. Here, he is referring to the Trinity, and it is clear that God bears witness and that all three members of the Godhead are involved. Jesus taught us that when the Holy Spirit came, He would bear witness to Jesus and all that He taught and who He was. All the members of the Godhead tell us that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.

 

Then in 1 John 5:8, the text says that there are three that bear witness on earth, the Spirit, the water, and the blood, and these three also agree as one. So we have a Trinity of witnesses on earth and in heaven. But it seems to be a mystery what is meant by 'water'. I want to walk you through the Bible and show you what water represents.

 

First, I will take you to Genesis 1:1-2.

Genesis 1:1-2 (NKJV) 1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness [was] on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

 

We see the Earth as a blank slate, prepared for God to continue His work of creation. The Earth is formless and void (empty), and in the darkness, the Spirit of God is hovering over the waters. So, apparently, the Earth is covered with water. As God continues His creative work, He makes light and the sky, then in Genesis 1:9-10, we are told:

Genesis 1:9-10 (NKJV) 9 Then God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry [land] appear”; and it was so. 10 And God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters He called Seas. And God saw that [it was] good.

 

Before this moment, there was no “dry land.” 2 Peter 3:5, speaking of this event, says:

2 Peter 3:5 (NIV) But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water.

 

As the dry land emerged from the water, new life was born.

 

Later, God permitted the slavery of the children of Israel to shape them into a nation. When He was ready to take the next step in seeing that nation formed, God prepared a man. Exodus 2: 1-10 tells the story.

Exodus 2:10 (NKJV) And the child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. So she called his name Moses, saying, “Because I drew him out of the water.”

 

Moses got his name because he was drawn out of the water. This prefigured a new life beginning. In this case, the nation of Israel was about to be born.

 

Next, in Exodus, when God led the Children of Israel out of Egypt, and the nation was born, God deliberately led them to a place where they were trapped between Pharaoh’s army and the sea.

Exodus 14:9-11 (NKJV) 9 So the Egyptians pursued them, all the horses [and] chariots of Pharaoh, his horsemen and his army, and overtook them camping by the sea beside Pi Hahiroth, before Baal Zephon. 10 And when Pharaoh drew near, the children of Israel lifted their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians marched after them. So they were very afraid, and the children of Israel cried out to the LORD. 11 Then they said to Moses, “Because [there were] no graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you so dealt with us, to bring us up out of Egypt?

 

They were trapped and knew it, while Moses was reassuring them that God would fight for them; inside, he was crying out to God for help. God then said to Moses.

Exodus 14:15-16 (NKJV) 15 And the LORD said to Moses, “Why do you cry to Me? Tell the children of Israel to go forward. 16 “But lift up your rod, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it. And the children of Israel shall go on dry [ground] through the midst of the sea.

 

Pharaoh and his army chased the Israelites, and while the Israelites made it through the sea unharmed, Pharaoh and his army drowned and perished in the sea. Paul recalls this incident in Corinthians when he says:

1 Corinthians 10:1-2 (NKJV) 1 Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, 2 all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea,

 

When the Earth formed, it emerged from water. When the nation of Israel was born, it went through water. In this case, Paul says they were baptized into Moses. In Romans 6, it tells us the following about our birth as Christians:

Romans 6:3-4 (NKJV) 3 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

 

Pay close attention to these words, “so we also should walk in newness of life.” 2 Corinthians 5:17 describes this newness of life as a new creation.

2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV) Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

 

When 1 John says that the water bears witness to who Jesus is, it refers to this association of water with God’s act of creation and physical life. Jesus’s physical existence and life all give testimony to the fact that He is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. At the opening of his letter, John says:

1 John 1:1-3 (NKJV) 1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life-- 2 the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us-- 3 that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship [is] with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.

 

John bears witness based on what he saw and heard. He says he even handled it with his hands. This is solid physical substance, not metaphorical or mystical, but real objects in this physical world. The same physical evidence that convinced those who knew Jesus then is the evidence that convinces us today. There is much historical evidence. One book that deals with this subject (there are many) is “The Case for Christ” by Lee Strobel. Check it out from the library, listen to it on Audible, or buy a physical copy of the book. It is an exciting journey through evidence that bears witness to the fact that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.

 

The Second witness on Earth that testifies about who Jesus is is the blood. The blood is the blood that Jesus shed for us on the cross. Jesus’s death purchased our salvation. From the time sin first entered the world, humanity’s hope has been set on this one event in history. When God promised Eve that her offspring would crush the serpent’s head, He was pointing forward to the cross. In his letter, John is referring back to the cross.  

 

If Jesus had stayed in the grave, His death would not have been different from the deaths of all humanity. However, He rose from the dead and is alive to this day. He is at the right hand of the Father, making intercession for us even at this very moment. The fact of Jesus’s resurrection is probably the single most important fact of history. Without this, we would have nothing. 

 

For the full impact of these witnesses, let me refer you again to “The Case for Christ” by Lee Strobel.

 

But the most salient witness is compiled in the collection of books we call the Bible. The Bible is a library of 66 books written over a period of almost 1,500 years by over 40 authors, all testifying that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.

 

The witness of Heaven is much greater than these physical witnesses. Even though history records what happened, many people deny the truth and even try to rewrite history to fit their liking. So, as we look at 1 John 5:8, we see that one witness in Heaven is also a witness on Earth—the Spirit. 

1 John 5:8 (NKJV) And there are three that bear witness on earth: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree as one.

 

God has sent His Spirit to bear witness on Earth. Jesus said:

John 16:7-11 (NKJV) 7 “Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. 8 And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9 of sin, because they do not believe in Me; 10 “of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; 11 of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.”

 

Without the help of the Holy Spirit, not one of us would be convinced, because the god of this world has blinded the eyes of the unbelieving.

2 Corinthians 4:3-4 (NKJV) 3 But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, 4 whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.

 

The devil is a liar. He has so confused the world about Jesus that it takes a miracle to lift the veil and reveal the truth. Do not be impatient with your unbelieving neighbor or blame him for being obtuse. Pray for him that God would remove the veil and give him understanding. Prayerfully answer his questions, seeking out whatever information he asks for. You have the Holy Spirit within you, and God may use you to help heal the blindness of your neighbor’s eyes. Because we have this witness within ourselves. Acts 1:8 says:

Acts 1:8 (NKJV) “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

 

We are the vessels that carry the witnesses that are on Earth. We tell of the water and the blood and have the Holy Spirit within us. We publish books, buy them, and give them to our neighbors, because the witness on Earth is ours to carry. Are we carrying it?